Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1887-02-19
ORIGIN OF GRADED SCHOOLS.

1t is quite generally supposed. says
DIR. II. NJ. Richardson, in the Central
Baptist, that Hon. Horace Mann, Of.
Massachusetts,, was the father of grad
I'd schools in our country; but such
schools were in successful operation
several years before Mr.. Mann was
known in this philanthropic labor. He
was in political life from 1927, when
he was elected to the lower house of
the Massachusetts legislature, and gave
special attention to religious liberty,
temperance and railroads, during that
period of his life. He was elected to
the senate in 1886, and after his ena
tOrial term, he was editor of the Re-
vised Statutes of the State. After
that, lie was secretary of the board of
education eleven years, in which time
he suggested and put in operation
many of the best features OF the COM
NOR school system of that state. He
was elected to congress in 1913. The
Normal school system was probably
originated by him, and the graded
school system had its beginning dur
ing his official term, but had been in
ouSSOooiuI oPCAAtlOh III 4NOW AoAA
state for some time previous to its in
PRODUCTION in Massachusetts. I will
herewith give a brief statement of the
history of its introduction in New
York.
In November, 1886, Rev. M. Stone,
d. D., now of Omaha, Neb., was call
ed to take charge of the new academy
in Menden, Monroe county, N. Y, his
wife taking charge of the female de-
partment. Soon after the opening OF
the academy, MI. Stone noticed with
pain, that six or seven district schools
around that village were broken up
by the withdrawal of nearly all the
best scholars from the best families,
leaving the poor, unable to provide
qualified teachers, and too poor to pay
the academy tuition. They were quite
discouraged and nearly hopeless. At
that time, after the public money was
exhausted, the wages of the teachers
we're assessed upon the scholars per
capita; which would be a very heavy
burden upon that class OF society, and
tend either to shorten the school term,
Or 10 employ cheap and unqualified
teachers. Mr.. Stone laid this unhappy
state of things before the trustees of the
academy, and urged them to remedy
this evil by allowing the consolidation
OF the adjacent districts with the viii
lage district, bringing all the advanced
pupils into the academy building as a
high school, and all other scholars ex-
cept the primary and secondary grades,
leaving them In the old quarters, in the
several school houses, or in as many of
them as would accommodate them as to
distance.
A minority were In favor of the plan,
but the majority seemed to prefer to
give their children the advantage over
tileir less prosperous neighbors by edu-
eating them apart from them in q more
aristocratic school.
There was at that time, also, q great
loss of time and success in teaching, on
account of a great diversity of text
books i'll all branches of study making
il necessary to omit class recilations
altogether, or hear several classes in
the same grade of the same study, thus
inntfiu0 up the time of the teacher into
40 many small parcels as to be of little
nse "a soy, there being two or three
Wines as many classes as would be
necessary if books were uniform. Mr..
Stone, therefore, went into the various
districts ald lectured upon the evils
resulting from diversity of text books
a I'd in favor of greater economy, by
consolidating the districts within
reasonable distance of town, so that
six or eve classes in az many school
houses, taught by as many teachers
ca III day, might be as well taught by
one much better qualified in the cen.
trail school. Mr.. Stone was called out
inro the surrounding region to urge
these reforms. Among the places
visited was Pittsford, eight miles east
OF Rochester, which I think had the
honor OF being second in establishing
graded :hools.
These subjects were more and more
discussed, and were making progress
IN the public mind in this region, when
Mr.. Stone removed to Mount Morris,
Livingston county, in May, 1s4O. He
Was soon appointed inspector of teach.
ers and schools for the township, and
soon after, in a county board which
was originated by James Wadsworth
he communicated his ideas to tina
board, and in public lectures t o various
neighborhoods in that county. Nc
definite steps of progress we're taker
toward the adoption of this plan till tn,
annual school meeting OF the nortl
district OF Mt. Morris Village in Octo-
Der, 1912. Mr.. Stone went before tina
full meeting and explained tn,
plan of encouraging the labol
of teaching by uniforming tex
books and grading pupils. HI
t drew, also, OIL the black board, a plar
; OF a school house which would b,
needed to carry out the plan in tina
place and the adjacent district. Hi
| suggestions were heartily approved b.
:, the meeting, and a committee was APP
| pointed TO estimate the cost Of such